Lufthansa Group is calling off almost the entire flight programme at its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich for 27 July as several employees plan to stage a walkout on that day. Seeking better pay, trade union Verdi has called on the about 20,000 ground employees of the airline to stage a warning strike from 3.45 a.m. on 27 July until 6.00 a.m. on 28 July, the German group says. In view of the upcoming strike, the carrier says it is cancelling a total of 678 flights in Frankfurt, including 32 on 26 July and 646 on 27 July. These flight cancellations are expected to affect 92,000 passengers, the airline adds. At the Munich hub, 345 flights are being cancelled, 15 of them on 26 July and 330 on 27 July, likely affecting 42,000 passengers. The effects of the strike may also lead to individual flight cancellations or delays on 28 and 29 July at the two hubs, it notes. The carrier says it will immediately inform passengers affected by cancellations and rebook them on alternative flights if possible. "The early escalation of a previously constructive collective bargaining round is causing enormous damage. It affects our passengers in particular, who are impacted during the peak travel season. And it is putting an additional heavy strain on our employees in an already difficult phase for air traffic," Lufthansa's chief human resources officer and labour director Michael Niggemann states. "In view of our high offer with very substantial pay increases over the next 12 months of more than 10% more in the pay groups up to €3,000 [$3043] monthly basic pay and a 6% increase for a monthly basic pay of €6,500, this so-called warning strike is in the middle of the peak summer travel season is simply no longer proportionate." The next round of negotiations between Lufthansa and Verdi is scheduled for 3 and 4 August.

The US Federal Aviation Administration has proposed an airworthiness directive intended to reduce the risk of fuel-tank explosions on Boeing 777s. The AD, disclosed by the FAA on 26 July and prompted by Boeing’s own fuel-system reviews, would require, depending on the aircraft configuration, installation of Teflon sleeves, cap sealing of fasteners, detailed inspections and corrective actions. The FAA states in the proposed AD that it has "examined the underlying safety issues involved in fuel-tank explosions on several large transport airplanes, including the adequacy of existing regulations, the service history of airplanes subject to those regulations, and existing maintenance practices for fuel tank systems". It adds that it has "determined that the actions identified in this proposed AD are necessary to reduce the potential of ignition sources inside fuel tanks, which, in combination with flammable fuel vapours, could result in fuel tank explosions and consequent loss of the airplane". The agency in June 2017 issued an AD applying to certain 777s which was intended to prevent arcing inside the main and centre fuel tanks in the event of a fault current or lightning strike, which, in combination with flammable fuel vapours, could result in a fuel-tank explosion. Additionally, the June 2017 AD required inspections for certain aircraft, corrective actions if necessary, and installation of Teflon sleeves under certain wire bundle clamps. Since the issuance of that AD, it emerged that more 777s were affected by the identified unsafe fuel-tank condition and that “additional work is required”. In September 2020, US safety regulators adopted a rule aimed at modifying early 777s to reduce the risk of a centre fuel-tank explosion, part of a long-running FAA effort to reduce the risk of fuel-vapour explosion across a range of aircraft types. The rule modified the fuel-quantity indicator system of 777-200s and -300s. The FAA will accept comments on the newly proposed AD through 9 September.

Ryanair group chief executive Michael O'Leary has expressed concerns about Boeing's ability to deliver 737 Max 8-200s as scheduled. Briefing analysts on 25 July, O'Leary referenced Boeing's "mumbling" about possible delays to some 50 Max 8-200s due for delivery between now and April 2024. "We are concerned about Boeing's ability to make those deliveries on time," says O'Leary. "They are already kind of mumbling about delivery delays, which we don't understand and won't accept, given that Boeing have already confirmed they are producing 31 aircraft a month from June of this year, so they will produce 200 aircraft between now and the end of the year." Ryanair expects delivery of 21 Max jets before Christmas and another 30 between January and April. These aircraft would allow the group to grow capacity 9-10% in the summer of 2023. O'Leary says he holds Boeing chief executive David Calhoun in "high regard" but has "very little confidence" in Boeing management in Seattle, and continues to be a "worrier" about delivery issues. The Ryanair supremo recalls that Calhoun and Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive Stan Deal assured the airline during a meeting in Dublin in May that it would be prioritised for deliveries, but says that in subsequent letters the airframer has sought to backtrack on those assurances. He accuses Boeing of being "long on talk and short on deliveries". Another source of concern for O'Leary is that previous deliveries of Max jets to Ryanair had come from already built inventory but now Boeing needs to build aircraft to be handed over. He points out, however, that thanks to its currency hedges the airline group is paying about a third less for its 737 Max deliveries than if it was not hedged.